International comparisons of supply-chain relationships

There is increasing interest in inter‐firm relationships as more firms rely on resources outside their own firm to compete successfully. However, managers have not yet been provided with the concepts, frameworks, theories and best practice examples to help them know how to manage these relationships in different circumstances. Investigates one particular set of circumstances, namely international differences between relationships. Using field research in the European automotive aftermarket, makes comparisons between UK and Spanish relationships on what is expected by customers in those relationships, how good the understanding is between supplier and customer and how satisfied customers are. Many similarities between the relationships in the two territories are evident but the main difference is that the Spanish relationships are closer, more trusting and friendly than those in the UK. However, this appears to have little effect on the amount of misunderstandings in those relationships and the amount of customer dissatisfaction. Concludes, therefore, that trust, friendliness and other features of longer‐term co‐operative relationships will not guarantee greater understanding and greater satisfaction but rather that we have to understand the gap between expectations and perceptions of performance in relationships to make improvements that count.